rodclop

heres a pic of the 8 point nothing special but second biggest deer i killed

excalibur43

I agree Ozwalt. Wasn't thinking about the mache being there, and sometimes folks use Bondo. I can't imagine folks not using anything under the skull plate!

Ozwalt

Assuming the cracking you're seeing is lips, nose, and eye orbit tissue. Those are areas where you'll find stuff other than just skin -- potter's clay, epoxy putty, paints, glosses, etc. Dried leather (assuming it was tanned) shouldn't crack like that unless there's another force in play we're not aware of. Clay, epoxy and glosses will all crack, and rapid temperature and humidity changescan cause that kind of damage, however. Kinda like pot holes appearing in a blacktop road aftera rapid freeze and thaw. Should be an easy fix for a skilled taxidermist, and shouldn't take him more than a hour's labor. Definitely find a better place to hang him away from the fireplace, nowhere near the kitchen or bathroom, and definitely not the basement or garage. Think climate control.

zubba

Agree...I can't imagine not using anything under the skull plate either. I use Bondo under the skull plate for both added strength and extra material to screw threw. I then use mache to build the back of the skull plate back. But using nothing...I can't image that....at least not with level taxidermy is at today. Maybe years ago, I guess.

Ozwalt

Amazing but true. Plenty oflow-cost taxidermists in my area basically use wooden shims or tongue depressors to level the antlers, so there's basically nothing but air inside that skull plate. I use paper mache instead of bondo, because I can glob a big ball of it down on the lumber and push the skull plate onto it, make sure everything's level, and then remove the antlers and set aside. The mache basically replaces the brain tissue, and the fit is perfect. 24 hours later, the mache is set hard as a rock, and we're ready to attach the horns.

zubba

I will have to try that Ozwalt. Bondo and I don't always get along....and Bondo always seems to win....lol.

So you cut the skull plate to make sure it is sitting correcty on the form without shims, then glob the mache onthe form, finally press the skull plate onto the mache forcing it to form to the skull plate?

Ozwalt

I actually "over-trim" the skull plate a bit, so if I set it on the wood, it's sitting too low. I spray the inside of the skull plate with Rem Oil, plop a great big ball of mache onto the wood and push the skull plate on. I squish it back & forth, side to side, etc. until I get the antlers to line up where I want them, scrape off the excess mache, pull off the antlers and forget about it until tomorrow. Right before attaching the antlers, I check to see if the hardened mache will pop off the lumber. If it does, I pull it off and glue it back down with a dab of hot glue. Probably not necessary, but it makes me feel better. Antlers go on, and mache over the top to rebuild the missing muscle tissue. If your mache isn't setting up hard enough or fast enough, just add a bit more plaster of paris to the mix.